Lowell residents to be honored at McNamara gala

LOWELL -- Lowell Catholic High School is planning to honor three community leaders when it hosts its 12th annual Bishop John R. McNamara Awards gala April 9 at Lenzi's in Dracut.

This year's honorees are John H. "Jack" Costello, Jr., Ann M. "Nancy" Cunha and Tom McKay. In addition to the awards, the gala features a cocktail hour with live entertainment, said Robbie Barnes, alumni and special events coordinator for Lowell Catholic High School, noting that the school's science building is named after the late bishop.

Costello, a 1963 graduate of Keith Academy, served in the Navy before becoming editor and publisher of The Sun.

He has served as chairman of the trustees for the Lowell Memorial Auditorium, chairman of the city's Arena and Stadium Commission, chairman for the Merrimack Valley United Fund, director of the board of AAA Merrimack Valley for more than 20 years and as a longtime director of Saint John's Hospital/Saints Memorial Medical Center.

Costello has also been very active in the Immaculate Conception Church, serving on the Committee to Save the Church, the Finance Committee and as chairman for the first two parish golf tournaments.

Costello is employed at his family's automobile business, Infiniti of Nashua.

Cunha, a 1956 graduate of Keith Hall, has served as vice president of the PTA and as a member of the CCD board, school secretary and volunteer gym teacher for the Immaculate Conception Parish, where she helped run the Monday night Bingo games.

Advertisement

She also served on Lowell's Council on Aging in the early 2000s and has continued to serve as a trained volunteer for Serving Health Insurance Needs of Elders.

In 2001, Cunha was honored by the Immaculate Conception School as a distinguished graduate.

A member of the Lowell Catholic Alumni organization, Cunha recently took part in the first Francis Keegan Cheerleading Competition, which benefited female sports at Lowell Catholic.

McKay is the president and managing partner of Mill City Management, Inc.

, which he formed with partners Terry McCarthy and Leo Creegan in 1995.

Since then, the three have presented numerous Broadway shows, concerts, conventions and corporate events at Lowell Memorial Auditorium and other venues in Worcester, Springfield, and Lynn and Portland, Maine.

McKay has also served on the board of investments at the Lowell Five, the board of Lowell General Hospital, the board of directors of the city's Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Middlesex Community College Foundation, COOL and the city's Winterfest Committee.

Each year, he and his partners at Mill City Management give out college scholarships to exceptional high-school students who are employed at the auditorium.

The awards are given in honor of McNamara's 40 years of community service and are in recognition of outstanding contributions and dedication to the local Catholic community.

McNamara served for eight years as an assistant pastor at Saint Rita Parish in Lowell before serving in the Navy as a chaplain. McNamara was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal as Chief of Navy Chaplains. He retired with the rank of rear admiral after serving two tours of duty in Vietnam.

McNamara served as Bishop of the Merrimack Valley for more than seven years before his retirement in October 1999.

"He was very good to Lowell Catholic and his sisters attend the gala every year," Barnes said.

Welcome to your discussion forum: Sign in with a Disqus account or your social networking account for your comment to be posted immediately, provided it meets the guidelines. (READ HOW.)
Comments made here are the sole responsibility of the person posting them; these comments do not reflect the opinion of The Sun. So keep it civil.

ODESSA, Texas (AP) — A West Texas man has been charged with impersonating an officer by using sirens and flashing lights to skip to the head of the drive-thru line at a fast-food restaurant. Full Story

Sufjan Stevens, "Carrie & Lowell" (Asthmatic Kitty) Plucked strings and pulsing keyboards dominate the distinctive arrangements on Sufjan Stevens' latest album, and in the absence of a rhythm section, they serve to keep time. Full Story